Kohlberg's stages of moral development
Kohlberg's stages of moral development. 3 different levels of the human's moral growth. Stages There are three levels in Kohlberg's stages of moral development. Each level has 2 seperate stages. This is the following scenario that Dr. Kohlberg was ask his patients. Heinz’s wife was dying from a particular type of cancer. Doctors said a new drug might save her. The drug had been discovered by a local chemist and the Heinz tried desperately to buy some, but the chemist was charging ten times the money it cost to make the drug and this was much more than the Heinz could afford. Heinz could only raise half the money, even after help from family and friends. He explained to the chemist that his wife was dying and asked if he could have the drug cheaper or pay the rest of the money later. The chemist refused saying that he had discovered the drug and was going to make money from it. The husband was desperate to save his wife, so later that night he broke into the chemist’s and stole the drug. Then Dr. Kohlberg asked these series of questions after he presented this scenari o to his patients. 1. Should Heinz have stolen the drug? 2. Would it change anything if Heinz did not love his wife? 3. What if the person dying was a stranger, would it make any difference? 4. Should the police arrest the chemist for murder if the woman died? By studying these answers from children ranging in different ages, Kohlberg hoped to learn if morality changed as people grew. His little experiment comprised of 72 Chicago boys aged 10–16 years, 58 of whom were followed up at three-yearly intervals for 20 years (Kohlberg, 1984). Kohlberg also asked several other scenarios and situtations and asked such questions to discover how else peoplereasoned with moral issues. People can only pass through th ese levels in the order listed. Each new stage replaces the reasoning typical of the earlier stage. Not everyone achieves all the stages. Level 1: Pre-conventional morality At this level (moslty 9 year olds and younger, but sometimes older too) we don't have a personal code of morality. Instead our moral code is formed around the standards of adults and the consquences of breaking or not following those set rules. Authority is outside the individual and reasoning is based on phyiscal consquences of actions. Stage 1: Obedince and Punishment Orientation The child/individual is good in order to avoid being punished. If a person is punished, then they must have done wrong. Stage 2: Individualism and Exchange At this stage, children recognize that there is just not one right view point that is handed down by authorities. Differebt individuals have different view points. Level 2: Conventional Morality At this level we begin to interalize the moral standards of valued role models. (Most adolescents and adults) Authority is interalized but not questioned and reasoning is based on the norms of the group which the person belongs to. Stage 3: Good Interpersonal Relationships The child/individual is good in order to be seen as good to their peers. Therefore, answers are related to the approval of others. Stage 4: Maintaining the Social Order The child/individual becomes aware of the wider rules of society, so judgements concern, obeying the rules in order to uphold the law and avoid guilt. Level 3: Post-conventional Morality Individual judgement is based on self-chosen principles, and moral reasoning is based on individual rights and justice. (10% - 15% of adults, not before mid 30s) Stage 5: Social Contrant and Individual Rights The individual becomes aware that it's okay to break the rules even if it goes against certain individuals. The issues, however, are not always clear cut. For example, in Heinz's situtation, the protection of life is more important than breaking the law against stealing. Stage 6: Universal Principles People at this stage have developed their own set of moral guidelines which may or m ay not fit the law. E.g. Human right, justice, equality. The person is willing to fight for what they believe in, even if it means going against what the rest of society believes in, and having to pay the consquences of their actions. Kohlberg doubted that few people reached or will ever reach this stage.